Tesco and Oliver Bonas will take the shop units at Chandlers Place on Sevenoaks High Street. Oliver Bonas's sign plans are open for comment until 30 October.

Tesco and Oliver Bonas will take the ground-floor shops at Chandlers Place, the new block of flats on Sevenoaks High Street. The developer, Purelake New Homes, announced the two names on 12 October. (Purelake, Big Brands Locked In!)

Neither retailer has given an opening date. Both have already lodged applications with Sevenoaks District Council for the work they need to trade from the site.

What the developer says

Purelake says the two brands will occupy “the flagship commercial units on the ground floor”. It says the scheme is nearing final completion and it is “on track to complete construction shortly”.

Chandlers Place has 107 one, two and three-bedroom flats in three blocks of four to five storeys. The homes went on sale with a launch weekend on Saturday 6 June. (Purelake, Launch Weekend Success)

The site’s planning address is 136 High Street. When the scheme won planning permission, Insider Media described it as the redevelopment of a former Tesco store. The supermarket is coming back to the spot it left. (Insider Media, Permission granted for £40m Sevenoaks scheme)

What the council’s register shows

The planning register for the “Site of 136 High Street” carries applications from both retailers. (Sevenoaks District Council planning register)

Reference Applicant What it is for Status
26/01041/FUL Tesco PLC Three air-conditioning units, a CO2 gas cooler and a 2.4m timber fence with gates Granted 21 July 2026
26/01414/ADV Tesco PLC A fascia sign, a store directory and window vinyls Granted 26 August 2026
26/02123/ADV Oliver Bonas Ltd Two fascia signs and window vinyl lettering Awaiting decision, comments to 30 October
26/02404/FUL Tesco PLC A further gas cooler, an air-conditioning unit and a 2.4m gate and fence Awaiting decision, due by 4 November

The cooling plant is the kind a food store needs for its fridges and freezers. Neither Tesco application says which Tesco format the store will be.

Purelake also has an application in to change the car club obligations in the scheme’s section 106 agreement (26/00937/VAR106). It has not yet been decided.

Is Oliver Bonas moving?

Oliver Bonas already trades in Sevenoaks. Its store finder lists a shop at 107 High Street, TN13 1UP. (Oliver Bonas, store locator)

Neither Purelake’s announcement nor the sign application says whether Chandlers Place will replace that shop or sit alongside it. We have not been able to confirm which, and will update this story when Oliver Bonas says.

What it means for you

A Tesco in the middle of the High Street gives shoppers without a car a food store a short walk from the north end of town. Chandlers Place also brings 107 households into the town centre, which matters for the shops, the car parks and the surgeries nearby.

If you want to comment on the Oliver Bonas signs, search the register for 26/02123/ADV. The consultation runs until Friday 30 October. You can also search your own street on the council’s planning portal.

Every week’s new applications across the district are in our planning applications page. Parking near the High Street is covered in our parking in Sevenoaks guide. More openings and closures are on our business news page.

Sources

Image: computer-generated view of Chandlers Place, supplied by Purelake New Homes. The finished shopfronts may differ.